Manipulation Station
I definitely plan on incorporating manipulatives into the classroom. As with everything else, I plan on adding it to my toolbelt as with everything else. These are obviously targeted at the kinesthetic learner. I loved the algebra tiles in the beginning but found issues with some mathematical concepts. For one, there is no proper way using the tiles to demonstrate (-1) (-1) = 1. This is rather unfortunate because there are many great features to it. I liked the idea of using pattern blocks to teach fractions and demonstrating things such as 2/6 equaling 1/3.
I have never been a big fan of the base ten blocks or the peg boards (I can't remember what the proper names for those are) because they seem somewhat limiting. If I were to use these items, they would probably be a part of some rotating stations as I don't see myself dedicating a whole class to something like base ten blocks. Although, I must admit that if I have a difficult time with some of the applied classes they would be another way to get through to the students.
I have also come up with another good reason for manipulatives. Not only do they cater to the kinesthetic learner, they are also excellent for bridging the gap between concrete examples and abstract ideas. Doing something like using a balance with mystery weights on it to learn about balancing equations and isolating variables is invaluable as you can show them that you need to do the same thing to both sides. This strategy is particularly useful with the intermediate grades as they have just started developing their abstract thinking abilities.
Tech Specs
I believe that technology has its place in the classroom, I just don't necessarily think that it should feel forced or deliberate. I think there are often times where teachers get a taste for the technology and two things happen. I think that lazy teachers become reliant on it and try to substitute the technology as the lesson. Robin mentioned this during his presentation on WBLTs at the research symposium. I also think that teachers start to use it improperly because they educated well enough in the proper use of many available technologies.
My personal view on it is skeptical at this point. I think that far too often we use it as a crutch. I came to UOIT to add technology as another tool in my repertoire. I did not come here thinking that I will go out and make my lessons tech oriented. My view is that the technology should be a stealthy tool. As one of our ICT projects worded it: the computer (technology) is used as a tool rather than the object of study. The technology should aid with the learning process but must be used with care. For example, if I incorporate clickers into a class, I would spend some time on creating something fluid and dynamic. I find that the mass multiple choice questions in many cases are just stuck in there and there isn't really a flow to the material being presented. I'm not sure how I would do things differently but I will try to come up with creative ways of including clickers in the future.
The same can be said about all technology. I would like to slowly develop or design some more dynamic lesson concepts that incorporate the tech tools rather than hilight their presence. To summarize I will use an analogy using calculators: Most times students use regular calculators during their homework and don't even pay attention to their use during that time since the focus is the math and not the calculator involved. In contrast to that, there are often forced lessons involving old-fashioned bulky graphing calculators. They have terrible displays, are outdated in design, both physically and mathematically, and are difficult to operate. When this happens the focus of the lesson ends up on the operating procedures of the calculator rather than the math the students are trying to learn.
I definitely plan on incorporating manipulatives into the classroom. As with everything else, I plan on adding it to my toolbelt as with everything else. These are obviously targeted at the kinesthetic learner. I loved the algebra tiles in the beginning but found issues with some mathematical concepts. For one, there is no proper way using the tiles to demonstrate (-1) (-1) = 1. This is rather unfortunate because there are many great features to it. I liked the idea of using pattern blocks to teach fractions and demonstrating things such as 2/6 equaling 1/3.
I have never been a big fan of the base ten blocks or the peg boards (I can't remember what the proper names for those are) because they seem somewhat limiting. If I were to use these items, they would probably be a part of some rotating stations as I don't see myself dedicating a whole class to something like base ten blocks. Although, I must admit that if I have a difficult time with some of the applied classes they would be another way to get through to the students.
I have also come up with another good reason for manipulatives. Not only do they cater to the kinesthetic learner, they are also excellent for bridging the gap between concrete examples and abstract ideas. Doing something like using a balance with mystery weights on it to learn about balancing equations and isolating variables is invaluable as you can show them that you need to do the same thing to both sides. This strategy is particularly useful with the intermediate grades as they have just started developing their abstract thinking abilities.
Tech Specs
I believe that technology has its place in the classroom, I just don't necessarily think that it should feel forced or deliberate. I think there are often times where teachers get a taste for the technology and two things happen. I think that lazy teachers become reliant on it and try to substitute the technology as the lesson. Robin mentioned this during his presentation on WBLTs at the research symposium. I also think that teachers start to use it improperly because they educated well enough in the proper use of many available technologies.
My personal view on it is skeptical at this point. I think that far too often we use it as a crutch. I came to UOIT to add technology as another tool in my repertoire. I did not come here thinking that I will go out and make my lessons tech oriented. My view is that the technology should be a stealthy tool. As one of our ICT projects worded it: the computer (technology) is used as a tool rather than the object of study. The technology should aid with the learning process but must be used with care. For example, if I incorporate clickers into a class, I would spend some time on creating something fluid and dynamic. I find that the mass multiple choice questions in many cases are just stuck in there and there isn't really a flow to the material being presented. I'm not sure how I would do things differently but I will try to come up with creative ways of including clickers in the future.
The same can be said about all technology. I would like to slowly develop or design some more dynamic lesson concepts that incorporate the tech tools rather than hilight their presence. To summarize I will use an analogy using calculators: Most times students use regular calculators during their homework and don't even pay attention to their use during that time since the focus is the math and not the calculator involved. In contrast to that, there are often forced lessons involving old-fashioned bulky graphing calculators. They have terrible displays, are outdated in design, both physically and mathematically, and are difficult to operate. When this happens the focus of the lesson ends up on the operating procedures of the calculator rather than the math the students are trying to learn.